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To have an eBay store or to not have an eBay store -- that really is an important question for any small business owner who relies on eBay for revenue. Truly, it's not a fit for everyone, and eBay acknowledges that. However, for many businesses, an eBay storefront could bring benefits that include wider marketing and online selling tools.

Branding

A store on eBay offers an advantage similar to having an offline storefront -- the ability to create an atmosphere and context in which customers can make emotional connections. In other words, an eBay store is good for branding. Stores further enhance the buyer experience by letting you "decorate" your store with a logo and banner. And, much like a physical store, you can organize all of your current listings into various categories instead of having them scatter-shot across the eBay marketplace. Additionally, eBay gives you tools to perform email marketing campaigns and offer promotions.

Payments

If you've sold on eBay already, then you know about the payment process. If you haven't sold on eBay, however, then you should know a little about how eBay enables you to accept payments. This is done primarily through PayPal, which eBay owns. The magazine "Inc." went as far as calling eBay's payment collection system "extremely user-friendly," and others seem to agree. Basically, you're getting a low-cost online checkout service that you don't have to maintain since that's all done by eBay.

Flexibility

In addition to the aforementioned benefits, you can manage your eBay store not only from your business laptop or computer but also from a mobile device using the iOS, Android, Windows or Blackberry platforms. The eBay Mobile App lets you track all of your eBay activity, including your sales activity in your eBay store. Additionally, you can even take advantage of your smartphone or tablet's camera to take photos of items and add new items to your store.

Considerations

Whether an eBay store is right for your business depends largely on how many items you sell regularly on the site each month. For example, if you regularly list over 50 items monthly, which are free to list without an eBay store, then you might benefit from opening a basic eBay store. Without a store, you must pay a small fee to list each item beyond your initial 50. However, with a store, you get 150 free listings in exchange for a monthly subscription price -- about $20 per month for a basic store as of July 2013.

About the Author

Aaron Charles began writing about "pragmatic art" in 2006 for an online arts journal based in Minneapolis, Minn. After working for telecom giant Comcast and traveling to Oregon, he's written business and technology articles for both online and print publications, including Salon.com and "The Portland Upside."